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3 Up, 3 Down – Resident Evil 7 Teaser Edition

One of the most crowd-pleasing reveals during Sony’s E3 briefing this year was finally getting confirmation on Resident Evil 7. In addition to a new first-person perspective for the series, there was news about PlayStation VR compatibility, and even a locked in release date of January 24th, 2017. But perhaps most exciting was a downloadable teaser that was made available that day for PlayStation Plus subscribers. Die hard fans didn’t waste any time getting their next fix from the popular horror franchise, and since then it’s been the talk of the town. As someone who feels the series is struggling with its identity as of late, I was skeptical going in. But after a few rounds with Beginning Hour, I’m confident that this drastic shakeup may just be the healing herb Resident Evil deserves — but there are some things that bug me.

The Love List

Finally Something Different

While it’s certainly debatable, Resident Evil 4 was, and still remains, the pinnacle of the franchise. Despite being one of my favourite games of all time, RE 4 also marks the moment the franchise began veering away from its survival horror roots. The sequels that came after didn’t achieve the same level of greatness. Beginning Hour brings something new to the series at the right possible time. It feels way more intimate, and the way it handles its scares, item management, and pacing shows that the creators are treating Resident Evil 7 as a much-needed reboot. RE 7 is the first big change since RE4, and if Beginning Hour is anything to go by, it’s a step in the right direction.

Genuinely Frightening

The change to first-person is appropriately spooky in Beginning Hour and it’s safe to say that my first playthrough was particularly nerve-racking. I never knew what lurked around the corner, or what awaited me behind every door. The photo realistic visuals and impeccable sound design are used to great effect and there were plenty of times I paused because of something I thought I saw or heard. A disturbing venture into the past through a VHS item you pick up early on ups the creepiness factor, and is a definite highlight of Beginning Hour.

The Secrets!

One look at the Resident Evil subreddit or fan forum should clue you in on how engaged fans were exploring Beginning Hour. The demo doesn’t last very long, but fans picked and scraped every inch trying to find as much information they could on the new game. Whether it be finding alternate endings, or spotting all of the ghost sightings, or unlocking an axe to swing around, there’s enough reasons to go back and replay the demo. There is, of course, one particular item in Beginning Hour that sent everyone (including myself) on a wild goose chase for weeks on end. More on that a bit later.